In the field of computer software, logging is a feature of many software systems and applications, such as in operating systems, web applications, middleware, and databases. Log messages may be generated by the various components of a software system or application. Application developers may program the components to write log messages to a log stream or log file to, for example, provide status information about the application, provide a warning about a condition identified by the application, or identify an error that has occurred within the application, just to name a few. For example, when an application is first started, log messages are often generated to verify that the subsystems used by the application have been properly established or accessed, and that the application itself has properly started. When exceptions occur, the application generates log messages to assist with problem determination. For example, the application may generate a stack trace showing the state of the application or system at the time of the exception. These log messages generated by the application may be used as an audit trail by application administrators.